Giving Up Yesterday
by duckie lover 151
Summary: Voltaire is getting married! What will happen when Kai's new stepsister is an old rival of his from back at the Abbey? How will his team be affected? Because she has a long history with someone else too.
1. Married!

**Chapter 1: Married?!**

The Bladebreakers had just gone inside Tyson's grandpa's dojo for lunch. They'd been training all morning. (Minus Ray, that is.) Lunch went as it usually did: Kai stayed out longer than the rest of his team to train longer. Although _they_ needed much more training than he did. Max and Tyson dug in, their lunches almost finished by the time they remembered to breath. And Kenny picked at his lunch while devising something with Dizzi.

Nobody noticed anything out of the ordinary until they realized that they couldn't hear the sound of Dranzer spinning around the dish. They looked up and saw Mr. Dickenson standing in Tyson's yard, talking to Kai. The older teen's normally cool expression had been replaced by a look of wide-eyed disbelief.

So, of course, being the nosy kids that they were, the Bladebreakers ran outside. They soon had looks similar to Kai's once Mr. Dickenson had explained what was going on.

Tyson, on top of spreading news as always, ran inside to inform the missing member of their team.

**In China...**

Every once in a while Ray went back to his old hometown in China to spend time with the White Tigers. That's where he was when he was called by a frantic Tyson.

Tyson had put it on speakerphone on his end so Ray could hear everyone else. But that ended in Max and Tyson trying to shout different things at the same time. Which ended in Ray telling them to shut up and explain one at a time.

By this time the White Tiger team was listening in on Ray's side of the conversation. Once Ray heard the news he burst out laughing, assuming it was a joke. Until he found out Tyson was serious.

"You're kidding!?" Tyson said something and then they both hung up.

"What's going on Ray?" asked Mariah.

"_Voltaire's _getting _married_!"

**I know it was kind of short and my stories usually have more dialogue. This is my first Beyblade story, which I do not own. Review Please!**

**Revised 11/19/12**


	2. Vada Morse

**Chapter 2: Vada Morse **

On the other side of town, a limo was entering a more classy side of Japan. (**A/N** I know Voltaire lives in Russia, but for the sake of not making things more difficult than they have to be, in this story he lives in Japan.)

Sitting in the front passengers seat next to the driver was Voltaire's new soon-to-be wife.

In the back was a girl who looked to be around thirteen or fourteen. She had short black hair, and her eyes were such a dark blue that they were commonly mistaken for purple. She had perfect posture as she sat so she'd obviously been brought up in a rich family. Her arms were crossed and she had an unfriendly expression on her face.

"Anastasia," said the lady in the front, "I expect you to be on your best behavior when you meet Master Voltaire. And that's how you are to address him as well."

Annie Morse sat silently. Her great-aunt hadn't been expecting a response, and even if she was, she wouldn't have gotten one. Annie never answered to Anastasia. She really had not cared who this man was until she'd heard his name. It was this information that caused her to break her silence.

"I hope that by marrying _him_ you don't think you'll be able to send me back to the Abbey."

"Like they would ever take you back," the woman sneered. "I expect you to be respectful at all times, even to your new step-brother."

"Step-brother?"

"Kai Hiwatari."

"Kai?"

"Voltaire's grandson, of course."

"I know who Kai is," snapped Annie, becoming more irritable by the second.

Kai Hiwitari. Her old rival back at the Abbey. The very few girls in that institution hadn't exactly been treated with overall kindness, but Voltaire's wretched grandson had been one of the worst. The two of them had never been, and most likely never would be, on good terms with each other.

"The two of you had better learn to show respect to each other," Vada continued sternly. "I will not have any of your attitude and neither will his grandfather. Now that you are going to be family."

"I'm not changing my last name," said Annie at once.

"Like they'd allow you to," her great-aunt nearly sneered. "You'd be a disgrace to the Hiwitari name."

Annie looked out the window again. With her luck, Vada might actually be married for more than a few years this time.

**Back In China...**

Kevin burst out laughing just as Ray had as soon as he heard the news. "You've got to be kidding! Who would marry that monster?! Who _is_ he marrying anyway?" It was amusing in a completely ridiculous way.

"I don't know," said Ray, deep in thought. "Some woman."

"Well I'd hope so," replied Kevin with a snicker.

Ray and Lee both gave him disapproving looks before returning back to their thoughts. One thing was for certain: Ray was in for quite an interesting union when he returned to Japan.

**At Tyson's Dojo...**

The Bladebreakers had experienced a new thing after Ray had hung up. Silence. After about ten minutes, Kai got up and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" asked Tyson.

"In case you weren't told, I have to go home to meet these people." Kai seemed grumpier than usual. The same thought was shared by the rest of the team. They were all extremely glad they weren't Kai.

**Read and Review Please! I'd like to thank Nek0 Nek0 for being my beta-reader. And I'd like to thank sasukechica for pointing out that Annie and Kai would not actually be step-siblings. But Annie's great aunt is marrying Kai's grandfather, so I don't know what they'd be. So, I'm just going to leave it as they're step-siblings. I don't own Beyblade!**

**Revised 11/19/12**


	3. Greetings

**Chapter 3: Greetings**

Annie stood impatiently in the foyer of the Hiwatari mansion. She would have tapped her foot in frustration if Vada hadn't been watching her so closely. Crossing her arms was as far as Vada would allow her to go. She could only act so petulant before her great-aunt put her back in line. For someone who was constantly rude to her great-niece, Vada had this huge thing with respect.

The younger Morse was getting frustrated. They'd been told that they were expected yet, it was at least twenty minutes past the time they were supposed to meet Voltaire and Kai, and neither of them had shown up. Annie really hated people who thought the world would wait for them forever, or in Voltaire's case, bend to their will just by them wanting it to. But she hated more that he was usually right.

Finally, the doors to the foyer opened. Before anyone entered, Vada smacked Annie's arms down so that they weren't crossed when their hosts arrived. Annie couldn't stand how Vada treated the Hiwataris like royalty.

When Voltaire, and Voltaire alone, entered the room, he seemed furious that his grandson was not there. He grumbled something about Kai's team mates having no sense of time, and if Vada hadn't been there Annie would have responded with "What's your excuse?" or something close to it. Vada gave her a warning glare as if she could read her thoughts. Annie sat down on one of the many couches littered around the room and went back to waiting impatiently for Kai to arrive.

**Out on the Street...**

Kai had been walking around for the past thirty minutes. He didn't have any certain place he was trying to get to, and it didn't really matter. Finally, after passing his home six or seven times, now being forty minutes late, he decided to go inside.

He wasn't particularly fond of this place to begin with. The mansion had lost its impressiveness over the years. It had become one of his least favorite places in the world, and he was filled with an extra ounce of dread as he walked past all the guards this time.

He walked into the foyer with a glare already plastered on his face. Voltaire and Vada didn't say anything as the two teens observed each other guardedly for the first time in years. It was an eerily familiar scene, except they weren't children anymore. Kai, unlike Annie, hadn't been prepared to meet his old rival. Especially not as his new relation.

And even for Annie it wasn't much less of a shock. Kai had definitely grown, but when you really looked at him she could still see the younger boy she'd resented at the Abbey. An anger that she hadn't felt in a long time boiled deep inside of her.

Kai sneered. "You're kidding," he said "My new _sister_ is the hopeless case?" It would have been hard to match the venom in his voice.

But Annie couldn't resist smiling proudly. It was nice to know the Abbey had remembered her for something.

**Read and Review Please! Thanks to my beta-reader Nek0 Nek0! I don't own beyblade. **

**Revised 11/19/12**


	4. The Hopeless Case

**Chapter 4: The Hopeless Case**

Strange enough, what Kai had said put her in a good mood. He may still be sneering, and Vada may be furious that no one had forgotten, but Annie was proud to be the Hopeless Case. Back at the Abbey, she was nearly a legend. Although it hadn't encouraged anyone else to stand up to Voltaire and do what she had.

"Happy to see me?" she asked sweetly. Kai scowled and broke eye contact. "Good," said Annie. "Because that's about as happy as I am to see you." She gave him a matching scowl.

"Anastasia!"

"Kai."

The two guardians warned at the same time. Realizing this, they smiled at each other in a way that was rarely seen in the two of them. Annie pretended to gag and Kai cast his eyes down going slightly pink.

_Kai showing embarrassment? _thought Annie _He must've changed more than I thought._

Unknown to anyone else, Annie had been in touch with Mr. Dickenson. He'd told her that being around his team mates had changed Kai quite a bit, and not to expect to see the same person from the old days. Annie hadn't really believed him until now. She could still see the old Kai, but he _had_ changed.

Kai had been warned in advance as well, but he thought Mr. Dickenson was wrong. Annie had not changed at all. She was still the immature little kid he'd known at the Abbey.

But then _she_did something_ he _didn't think possible. She crossed her arms and created a more powerful glare than he thought possible to come from her. While she and her great aunt was having a silent glaring contest he slipped out of the room.

Once there he made his way to the front doors. He was surprised to see Mr. Dickenson waiting outside for him.

"Mr. Dickenson?"

"Hello Kai, hello Annie."

Kai was surprised, yet again, as Annie popped out from behind him. He hadn't thought anyone had even seen him leave, and even if they had he hadn't expected anyone, especially not Annie, to follow him. He was growing increasingly frustrated, an effect she'd always had on him. It was an effect he'd seen again with Tyson.

"What's up?" she said to the two of them.

"Why are you here?" he asked with a groan.

"Well I'm here because the person who owns me is getting married to that monster of a grandfather of yours in a few weeks."

Her smile tested him to get angry, or snap back at her, or something. But Kai was above that now. He rolled his eyes and didn't respond.

Mr. Dickenson smiled slightly at their behavior and said, "Annie, Vada doesn't own you."

This time Annie rolled her eyes. "Try telling _her_ that."

Mr. Dickenson ignored this. "And Kai, she's here because I asked her to join us."

_When? _Kai wondered irritably. Instead, the question he asked was: "Why?"

"Because, for the next week, Annie is going to be training with your team."

**Read and Review Please! Thanks to my beta reader, Nek0 Nek0. **

**Thank you Rayfirebird17 for reviewing. Getting a review put an end my procrastination, for now at least. And sorry for not updating in so long!**

**Revised 11/19/12**


	5. Meeting the team

**Chapter 5: Meeting the Team**

"What?!" the two burst out simultaneously. Kai was pissed. And Annie wasn't looking much happier.

_Where did this come from?! Mr. Dickenson said he had a surprise, but spending a week with his team?! Has he lost it?!_

Her soon-to-be stepbrother was thinking along the same lines. Though both the young girl and the old man were sure he added quite a few expletives to his thoughts.

Mr. Dickenson was amused at their matching expressions. In his mind, Annie never could realize what was good for her. It probably came from living with Vada for most of her life. Even when she'd been with her parents Annie had never gotten the privilege of making her own decision. Kai was a bit like that too. And it hardly help that the boy would never admit to being wrong.

"Depending on how things go, it may be longer." Annie looked ready to strangle him and Kai looked ready to strangle Annie.

Kai's scowl deepened and he strode back into the house. Mr. Dickenson started to walk away. Annie quickly caught up with him. "What's wrong with you?! I can't be on a _team_! I'm terrible with people!"

"Annie, I hate to admit it, but your aunt may be right. You need to learn some respect, young lady!" His usually cheerful face, took on one of its stern looks. Annie glared at him and Mr. Dickenson couldn't help feeling a bit sympathetic. What she'd said had been a bit harsh but what he'd just told her hadn't been much better. But that didn't mean it wasn't true, and Kai wasn't the only one with an aversion to owning up to a mistake.

Annie thought of Vada very much like how Kai thought of Voltaire. Thinking about it now, Mr. Dickenson thought back to Kai's reaction when he'd been made part of a team. Kai had been much quieter, but Annie had probably just spoken his exact thoughts, and after all, the slate-haired boy wasn't nearly as open.

**...**

As much as the two teens had protested, they both showed up at Tyson's grandfather's home the next day. As Annie soon found out, they were pretty eager to meet her. Ray and the White Tigers had flown back from China and were there along with Tyson, Max, Kenny, and of course Dizzi. It was a little daunting to be met with so many people, but the Chinese beyblading team were clearly welcome at the Grangers' home, so she would just have to grit her teeth and deal with it.

Tyson's grandpa creeped her out a bit, not that she showed any emotion. If Kai could pull it off after being out of the Abbey and around _them_ for so long, so could she.

While all were intrigued, it was the only other female in the room that showed the most interest. Mariah had been surprised, as had everyone else, when they'd found out that Kai's new sister would be joining the Bladebreakers for a while. Of course, she couldn't say anything for her beyblading skills just yet, but Annie didn't exactly seem the type to handle being in a group well for any amount of time. Then again, neither had Kai, and he'd come such a long way that Mariah decided not to comment on this observation. There was no point in initiating a rocky start. The White Tigers had been invited to stay at Tyson's place for a while and they'd accepted. She loved spending time with Ray and hadn't been happy when she'd learned that he'd be heading back early. But the Bladebreakers either enjoyed having a lot of people around, or felt guilty about it, so the White Tigers had left China too.

The pink-haired girl took one last look at Annie before they all went inside for lunch. Neither her nor Kai had stopped scowling since their arrival.

_I hope she isn't a female version of Kai,_ thought Mariah. _I don't get why they always look so unhappy. She'd probably be very pretty, if she'd just learn to smile._

**...**

Nearly the second Tyson had finished stuffing down his third helping of the meal, training began. There was no doubt in anyone's minds that Kai and Lee would not get along, especially not with Kai in this state, so the two teams did not train together.

Annie felt like Kai was pushing her so much harder than anyone else, especially when it came to the physical training. Not that she minded. She knew that she was the only one who'd be able to keep up with Kai's idea of ideal training. Ray was the only one who could come close to keeping up with them, and that was probably only from training in the mountains for all those years. The two had been pushed brutally past any realistic limits during the course of their childhood. She found it funny in an almost bitter way that of all the people she'd meet up with from the Abbey it would be Kai. Had it been anyone else, perhaps they would have been able to share this moment.

But when Kai finally ordered her to do some training with her blade, she refused.

"What did you say?" he asked threateningly.

"I said I won't do it. How I blade is nobody else's business." He turned his glare up full force, but she was standing her ground.

"In case you didn't understand, you're part of this team now. Whether you or I like it or not." He made it clear that he clearly wished she were on any team but his, but that was okay. It was obvious that she felt the exact same way.

"That wasn't my decision, was it? Besides you should be happy. I know you don't want me here. And I'd lose that tone if I were you," she said as she walked towards the house. "You're starting to sound like your grandfather."

Annie closed the door and didn't stick around to see the effect her words would have on Kai. She knew it was a bit of a low blow, especially because she herself blew up at anyone who compared her to Vada, but she wouldn't allow any amount of guilt to leak through. As she looked around the room, she noticed Tyson's grandpa was still looking out the window.

_Has he just been standing there for the past few hours? Does he have nothing better to do than watch us train?_

"You and the K-man's attitudes sure clash, huh dudette?"

She couldn't help but smile a little at the way he talked. So she answered him to amuse herself.

"Yeah, they sure do. Dude." She didn't even know why she added that last part. But she was sure of one thing. These next few days, Tyson's dojo was going to be a full house.

**Read and Review Please! Sorry I haven't updated in so long! Thanks for Rayfirebird17 and Kissing Serendipity for reviewing. And thanks to Nek0 Nek0 for being my beta-reader!**

_**Revised 11/20/12**_


	6. Forget It!

**Chapter 6: Forget it!**

For the rest of the night, Annie kept her distance from the two teams. To be honest, she was a little embarrassed by her outburst during the training. It was an odd feeling. She never would have imagined that she'd ever be sorry for something she'd said to Kai. But there were quite a few things that were upsetting her at the moment.

The first one may not be very noticeable to anyone else, but to Annie it was plain as day. Kai had been able to change and she hadn't. She clenched a hand into a fist and ground her teeth. The older boy was so comfortable around these... people. He may not want to show it, but he clearly did not get as agitated by merely being in their presence as she did.

The second thing was that, for the time being, Annie couldn't beyblade, and that's what she'd been sent to the team to do!

And finally, everyone staying at Tyson's dojo was really freaking her out. In truth, Annie was terrified of people. Even when she hadn't been in the Abbey, she never saw anyone but the people her parents worked with. And they hadn't wanted anything to do with her. Meanwhile, at the Abbey every other person there had either been an enemy or competition. Nothing in her past had taught her how to act around others, so she'd kind of become a loner. If anyone came too close, it was like a sixth sense went off in her head, telling her it was time to get herself the hell out of that situation.

But she couldn't escape this place, so she had no idea what she was supposed to do. Getting close to the other bladers wasn't an option. Her panic sensors went off whenever one of them talked to her or even stood too close for her liking. Annie had been classified as a lot of things in her life, but the one thing she'd never been was social. Up until now that had never seemed like a problem.

Kai might never say anything, and be a complete ass when he _did_ say anything, but at least he could sit at the table without being panicked.

"Annie?" She whirled around. Behind her stood the pink haired girl who'd been staring at her earlier. "Sorry to startle you," she said with an awkward little laught, "but dinner will be starting soon. I know you don't like us very much, but Ray's cooking is amazing! Trust me, it's not something you want to miss." She took a step into the room. On instinct Annie jumped backwards. But as she did, Max came through the door behind her. She jumped into him.

"Oops. Sor-"

But Annie had sprinted past Mariah and out the front door before he could finish the word. She was tearing through the woods behind Tyson's house before either of them could blink.

**...**

Mariah glanced up at the clock, then towards the door and window. Dinner had ended ten minutes ago and there was no sign of Annie. She hadn't come back while everyone else was eating like she'd hoped.

"What's wrong, Mariah?" Ray was cleaning up the kitchen. His childhood friend had been sitting at her spot at the table, staring off into space, with an upset look on her face long after everyone else had left.

"I'm worried about Annie, Ray."

"Why?"

"I went to talk to her before dinner. Just to be friendly. She looked kind of disturbed. Then when she accidently jumped backwards into Max she looked downright terrified. It was like she was some kind of wild animal, encountering human life for the first time. I've never seen anyone, not even Kai, act like that."

Ray sat quietly for a few moments. "Before she came, Mr. Dickenson came to talk to me. He didn't want to get too far into her personal life, and I don't mind, it's her business after all. But he told me that Annie isn't too good around people. She was either ignored or left by herself her whole life."

Mariah gasped. "That's horrible!"

"I wouldn't worry about it too much. I think Annie likes it that way. She doesn't know how to act around others, so what's making her be like this, is being around us."

Mariah commenced staring out the window, waiting for the dark-haired girl's return, and Ray smiled sympathetically. Not that he would pry, but Mr. Dickenson would only reveal so much about Annie's life, a problem they'd run into time and time again with Kai. He knew from experience that there wasn't much they could do but wait and see what happened.

**...**

Annie had run further than she'd thought. But she wasn't worried. It was a talent of hers to be able to see where she was going, and memorize landmarks, no matter how fast or far she was going. It was a survival skill she'd picked up over the years. Even so, she was wiped out. Exhausting yourself was a good way to get rid of emotions. That one, first tip may be the only thing she kept in her mind from the Abbey. It was stored in the "useful information" part of her mind.

"Found you."

Annie jumped off the log she'd been sitting on and looked behind her. There stood Kai, looking as grumpy and sullen as ever.

She looked a bit confused. "What do you want?"

"Look at you." He scowled. "Like a frightened baby animal! You can't last a few hours with human kind before running off! You're weak, Annie."

Annie's temper boiled. But behind her anger was the thought that she had stepped over the line. Or, more specifically, Mr. Dickenson had pushed her over the line. She was in Kai's territory now.

"Oh? And when did _you_ become Mister Social?! There's no point in hanging around your team if you're just going to be a mute jerk the whole time!"

"Oh, like you'd know what that's like! At least I'm there! You could've tried!" Kai so rarely lost his temper. He never allowed his cold, detached facade to slip, but this was an effect that Annie had always had on him that he still resented to this day.

"Forget it! They aren't _my_ team mates! You may belong here Kai, but _I_ don't!"

"You're part of this team now! You'd better start acting like it! Which brings me back to this morning. What do you mean you won't blade?! That's what this team happens to do, you know!" The longer this wore on, the more worked up he got. For a moment, he almost wished she were Tyson; then there's be no good reason why he couldn't just deck her right now. But, of course not... Tyson never managed to think through a comeback that would sting as much. He just tended to let the first thought that crossed his mind fall out his mouth.

Annie ran off again and was pleased to note that Kai didn't follow her. Soon she found herself back at the dojo. Kai was just walking through the doors. She went around back and sat on the porch.

What was wrong with Kai? He's the one who'd made it obvious she wasn't wanted here. She'd never seen him so riled up. Why was he so concerned now that she was getting along with the group?

"They're all freaks," she muttered to herself. But in her mind she knew they were probably the normal ones. The only thing wrong with that, was she never thought she'd be able to fit Kai into their group.

**Read and Review Please! I know it's been a while since I've updated. Thanks to ninja2k for reviewing. Even though he/she reviewed the first chapter, not the fifth. Thanks anyway! And thanks to Nek0 Nek0, my beta-reader. Okay, every time I try to upload this the chapter comes out all underlined and half of it is bolded and underlined. So sorry if that happens, I hope it'll be fixed by next time, or hopefully it'll be fixed when I upload this... again.**

_**Revised 11/20/12**_


	7. Changes

**Chapter 8: Changes**

As she woke up and sprung up in bed, Annie slapped a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming. What a nightmare.

It had been something like a flashback from her life just before she was admitted into the Abbey. Then it had switched to right before she'd been kicked out. Finally, Annie had relived last night. Her conversation with Kai in the woods.

Dreams could put people through hell, and Annie was a regular victim.

She plopped back against the pillow, and remembered to be quiet. She was sharing a room with Mariah and didn't want to wake her. An interrogation was the last thing Annie needed.

**...**

Unknown to Annie, someone _had_ seen her. But it wasn't Mariah. Max had been returning from the bathroom when he'd thought he'd heard something from the girls' room.

The door was open so he wasn't really spying. Not in his mind. Besides, all he did was peek in. He didn't enter and start sneaking around or anything.

As he stood just out of sight, Max had seen Annie. Almost as freaked out as last night. She was sitting up in bed. She was sweating like crazy and had her hand covering her mouth. She'd looked so panicked that Max started to get worried. Annie looked like she was about to be sick, and that wasn't something Max felt like staying around for. But just as he was about to sneak away unnoticed, Annie lay back on her pillows.

_I wonder what's wrong? She's such a strange girl. I've never seen anyone act like she does. _Max crept back to bed, successful in being unnoticed. Or at least, that's what he thought. Unbeknownst to him, Kai was watching the boy as he fell back asleep.

Despite the fact that it was only around 4 AM and still too dark out to see, Kai was just about to get up. He didn't usually take that much of a notice of his team mates, but he couldn't help wondering what was troubling the blond so much. Max was not usually a big worrier.

Once he was sure that the White Tigers and his own team mates were all asleep again, Kai got up and walked past the girls' room on his way to the kitchen. He could've sworn he saw Annie's eyes shift toward the doorway as he walked past, but Kai didn't stop so he couldn't be absolutely positive. And not wanting to show any interest in her was an excellent excuse to hurry on past.

At about 4:30, when Kai was sipping at his coffee, the former White Tiger and all his former team mates came out into the kitchen. Kai pretended to take no notice of them as well, and the only greeting he got was a "Morning, Kai" from Ray. A greeting which he did not return. To his intense dislike, he saw that Annie was also up, peeking out from the doorway to her room. He wasn't surprised. Every member and former member of the Abbey was an early riser, and it also didn't surprise him that she wasn't coming out into the kitchen to join them.

**...**

Annie got up as soon as she was sure Mariah would be out of hearing range. After she got dressed, Annie was looking around the corner of the doorway, and feeling very childish while doing so. All of the White Tigers and Kai were up and moving. Occasionally, one member of the mountain group would make short conversation with each other, but it ended quickly and Kai was never a part of it. No surprise there.

There was one moment of panic, not that she showed it, when she was certain Kai saw her. But he went back to his coffee.

She felt immediately stupid for thinking he'd point her out. Doing so would mean her having to join the group, and that was something she knew Kai didn't want.

The White Tigers went out the front door. Annie actually heard Kai call to her, much to her surprise, but she'd already gotten as far as down the hall and in the doorway of the back entrance. She ignored him and went out on the porch.

There was a big training course in the front and a much smaller one in the back. She was surprised to see Max, who had not been able to fall back asleep after all, was training. He didn't notice her, so she sat down on the porch and watched him for a bit. She found that she didn't mind being in his presence nearly as much when he wasn't aware of it.

While sitting there, Annie's determination came back and she decided something that she figured would change her lifestyle quite a bit. She couldn't stay terrified of people if she was going to be part of this team. And it was finally starting to sink in that there really was no way out of this.

Mr. Dickenson had brought her aside before she and Kai had set out to this place the other day. He'd told her that this would be a good change for her. Of course, she'd protested violently at the time.

But Annie now understood what he meant. Forced or not, this _would_ be a good change.

Of course, almost all of her hype and resignation came crumbling to pieces when Max finally spotted her.

**Sorry for anyone who's been reading this! This story has taken a backseat recently. Review Please! Thanks to Nek0 Nek0, my beta-reader!**

_**Revised 11/20/12**_


	8. Effort

**Chapter 8: Effort**

"Annie?" Max held Draciel in his hand. She hadn't realized he'd stopped practicing.

As Max walked over and sat down next to her, that familiar sense of panic set in. Annie was fighting a strong urge to jump up and run far, far away. She wished she could blend in with the wall, and Max would think he'd been mistaken. He hadn't seen her. It was just a trick of the barely-there light. But, as they rarely do, Annie's wishful thinking didn't come true. Max was still sitting next to her. Just watching her.

Annie was stiff. Her hands were clamped into fists at her sides, and she wouldn't acknowledge him. She was just staring out at the yard. Max turned his head to look out as she was doing. You could now clearly see everything. But it was still early, so the yard had a grayish light cast over it.

It was a strange sight actually. The two of them just sitting there. Max was a bit worried and confused at her actions but overall relaxed.

Annie was the complete opposite. She was panicked, uncomfortable, and couldn't remember ever wishing so much for one person's single existence to just disappear. Her legs were tucked under her; she was preventing herself from running away. Taking away that choice didn't make this anymore bearable than before.

"So, are you okay?" asked Max.

Annie slowly nodded her head slightly. Why couldn't this usually hyperactive kid just go away? Why was he so calm anyway? She was freaking out right now. She decided to go inside after a few more minutes of no conversation. But, her legs had fallen asleep and she was a little too close to the edge. She toppled over it, landing on her back. When she sat up Max was reaching over the edge to help her up. She was sure Max could see her eyes go big. She leaned back and caught her breath.

"Annie? What's wrong? Do you feel okay? Did you hit your head or something?" All his concern was just adding to her panic.

Somehow, she managed to jump up backwards, turn, and sprint into the forest all in one motion. Even if Max had followed her he wouldn't have been able to catch up. Max just stared at the ground where she used to be. After a while he got up and started practicing again, but Annie could tell it was half-hearted.

She could tell because she hadn't gone that far. She'd made sure she was out of sight before she turned around, headed back, and climbed a tree. She was now close enough to watch Max, but well hidden so that he wouldn't spot her.

She knew she should go back. What was that saying? If you try and don't succeed, try, try again? Boy, did _that_ bring back unwanted memories.

...

_In fact, the memory brought her back to a time not too long ago in real life. And even closer if you counted her dreams. It brought her back to a time, just two or three months before she'd been kicked out of the Abbey._

_It had been her third rematch with Tala in two weeks. Ranked in the Abbey, Annie was pretty good. Really good, actually. But when you compared her to Kai or Tala, she was pitiful. And in the Abbey they were the ones who mattered. _

_She'd lost, again. But Tala was never one to just let it go. He liked to rub it in. To make sure each and every loser knew just how superior he was. __It was that point in the battle where Annie and Tala both knew that it was over._

"_How fitting," Tala had said before knocking her blade out. "A hopeless situation for the hopeless case."_

_He had knocked her blade out of the dish. With skill. Enough skill so that, before Annie had known what was happening, her blade sailed out of the dish, and smacked her on the forehead with enough force to make her fall backward. _

_She caught her blue and purple blade as it bounced off her forehead and glared up at Tala. Not that he noticed. Tala was too busy looking down on her. Giving her one of his looks. One that Annie had been sure he practiced in his spare time, a look reserved only for Annie when she lost to him. Again._

_Ian had been laughing and Bryan had given her his own look. Spencer and Kai hadn't been around. Thankfully. At the time she felt like punching Ian through a wall. What right did _he_ have to laugh? When it came to beyblading, her blade would be running circles around his._

_Ian had lost to her about as many times as she'd lost to Kai and Tala put together! Honestly, she was a little scared to have a rematch with Bryan after what happened the first time. And she and Spencer were basically on even ground._

_As he was leaving, he turned his head to look down on her once more. "But, hey, you know the saying. If you try and don't succeed try- well in your case- fail, fail again, right?"_

_She glared at him as he continued his exit._

**...**

She brought herself back to the present. Annie managed to get inside without Max noticing. To her dismay, Kai was still in the kitchen when she entered. And she was sure from the look he had, that he'd been watching.

"Pitiful." Yup, he'd definitely been watching.

Annie scowled at him. "Like it was any of your business anyway." She just stood in the kitchen for a little while, near the doorway, expecting him to respond. Which would've been a good enough reason to guess that he'd decide not to.

But, after a few moments of silence, he did respond. "You could've been better than that, you know. But you were just too stubborn to keep up in the Abbey, weren't you?"

Kai never assumed anything about anyone, unless he was pretty close to positive that he was correct. But he never did that with people like Annie or Tyson because they were too unpredictable. That's why she was so surprised when he did it then.

She sighed. She hadn't decided to find a way to get kicked out because she was impatient. And it absolutely wasn't because it had been too hard.

"Kai, I never thought I'd tell you this, but when it comes to beyblading, I really admire your skill. And someday I'd love to be that good. But if I have to become some emotionless, self-centered zombie who lives off of pride and anger to do that, it just isn't going to happen."

With that said she left the room. One thing was clear in her mind. She'd suffered a minor setback, but she hoped Max was patient. She would be trying again tomorrow.

But a part of her was in shock. Annie had just done something she was sure would never happen.

She had just complimented Kai Hiwitari.

**Read and Review please! I don't own Beyblade!**

**Thanks to ninja2k and chocolatexloverx16 for reviewing the last chapter. Sorry I hadn't updated in so long!**

_**Revised 11/20/12**_


	9. Preparation

**Chapter 9: Preparation**

One of the strange things about Kai and Annie now living together was that, at home, they didn't argue. Not once except for that first day. It wasn't because they'd started to get along better, and it definitely wasn't because they were obeying the commands of their guardians.

Actually, no one was quite sure why there weren't constant 'explosions' coming from the two teens, but it never happened and some people were just grateful for the peace. The maids belonged to this category. They were extremely busy with Vada and Voltaire's wedding getting ever closer and they didn't need two impossible teenagers disrupting the rest of the household with their own private war.

There was usually no conversation at dinner so they never needed to worry about interacting there and they usually just kept out of each other's way during training. Kai would stick around for a little while after and Annie would leave as soon as the training session was over.

This routine, however, was interrupted the following week. The Bladebreakers and Annie headed out to the train station after one on their sessions. They were saying farewell to the White Tigers, who were taking the train to an airport in the next town over. Ray was the only one who was getting on the train with them. He would say his official goodbye right before his former teammates got on their plane.

Annie didn't have to come with them but on impulse she decided to. When she announced this, Kai raised his eyebrow at her and she couldn't blame him. Annie was a bit surprised herself. _Oh well,_ she thought. _Why not?_

They had a clear blue sky that day. Perfect weather. Also on impulse, Annie announced to the group right as they were loading themselves into the cars that she had decided to walk to the station. Most of them looked stunned, Kai just looked amused.

"Annie," said Max in surprise. "It's a little over a mile away." He himself could barely get through the physical training that Kai assigned, though he wasn't nearly in as bad a shape as Tyson.

"Yeah, and I could use the excercise," she said simply. It was probably the longest sentence she'd ever said to any of them other than Kai, who made quick work of hurrying them along and convincing the others to let Annie walk. Annie figured that he just didn't want to have to put up with her for any longer than was necessary.

She started to walk once the car was out of sight. It was a peaceful walk and incredibly, no one else seemed to be outside on such a nice day. Annie had decided to walk because she knew that by the time she got there the White Tigers would be long gone. Perhaps the Bladebreakers would be, too. That didn't bother her so much; if so, she'd simply turn around and begin the walk back. Mariah had been trying to make friendly conversation with her all week, but so far she hadn't come up with anything that Annie had had to give a long answer to.

The girl was almost at the station before she ran into trouble. With much hatred, she noticed a familiar red-haired teen walking towards her. Just great. Why was Tala, of all people, here? What business would he have around this part of the city? It didn't seem logical, but the only reason Annie could think of was that Tala must've known she was there. But who could possibly be feeding him information? Annie almost wanted to suspect Kai, but after a moment of thought she realized that even Kai wouldn't stoop that low to make her miserable. Besides, he and Tala weren't exactly on the best terms anymore...

Unfortunately, Tala walked right up to her, familiar smirk in place, just as she'd been dreading. "Hey, Annie. Funny seeing you around here." Not funny at all. There was no way this was a chance meeting. Annie just scowled at him in response. This seemed to fuel the ill-intent behind Tala's smirk. Just great.

Tala got closer until he was only a few feet away. "So," he said in a sickly pleasant tone of voice, "I've heard that you're the new edition to the gang of losers that Kai ditched us for."

"I'm not sure who you're getting your facts from, Tala, but you might as well tell them they're wrong," Annie said loftily. If Annie was the one who tended to set Kai off, Tala had nearly that exact effect on her. Only her anger seemed to show in that she just got snobbier and snobbier. Tala may have known exactly what she'd meant but he pretended like he misinterpreted it wrong.

"Really? Have you seen them blade? They've got no talent," he sneered. "Obviously comes from no proper training."

"Yeah, well I heard they beat _your_ team in the tournament!" Annie shot back. Tala's sneer turned into a glare and he looked ready to retort, but he apparently thought better of it, because his expression turned back to one of fake pleasantness.

He leaned his face into hers and said, "It's a shame such a pretty girl turned into such a violent brat. You could've been really useful to us, you know."

Annie felt more hatred for this certain teenager than she had for quite a while. She hated the fact that he would tower over her if her stood up correctly. She hated to admit that he was undoubtedly the stronger of the two. She hated the fact that they had ever met, and most of all, she hated that he hadn't fallen off a horribly tall cliff in the time since she'd left the Abbey.

Annie said her next words with all the venom in her voice that she could muster. "Tala, you'd better get lost before I start going up to random strangers and telling them I'm being stalked and harassed!"

She hoped that, by an immense stroke of luck, Tala wouldn't realize that there didn't happen to be anyone else on the street that day. But since Tala's sneer worsened she realized that this hadn't happened.

"You heard her. Get lost."

What the hell? Why was _Kai_ here?! Tala scowled at him, but Kai defeated this with the harshest glare Annie had ever seen on him. Her instincts told her to shudder, but she ignored this and continued to watch the two of them. Some people thought that Kai and Tala had been friends before Kai became one of the Bladebreakers. Those people didn't know what they were talking about. Before the Bladebreakers, Kai didn't even know the basics of friendship, and he still wasn't that good at it, but he was getting better. Tala and Kai had been teammates, meaning simply that they'd had to work together and deal with each other's company. That was the end of their relationship.

Tala's scowl didn't leave his face, but slowly he left the two of them on the sidewalk. Kai's glare softened to a scowl as he looked at Annie. He put his hand on her back and pushed her forward. She walked.

Kai's voice was nothing more than a growl, but it was clear enough for anyone around them to hear him. "That figures. You're left alone for a little while and you find Tala." He spat out his name.

Annie's confusion turned back to anger. "Yeah, because I went _looking_ for him," she said sarcastically.

"I don't want you anywhere near him!" Annie rolled her eyes. Like she needed that order. Annie didn't _want_ to be anywhere near him. Those were Kai's last words to her as he reentered the station. Max had been following him and had seen the whole thing, but Kai didn't bother to make this fact known. If he wanted to be a snoop, fine. But he was doing a pretty crappy job if whoever he was following could tell he was there. Max didn't call out to either of them, but he managed to get back inside before Annie.

Waiting for them were the rest of the Bladebreakers, minus Ray. "There you two are!" exclaimed Tyson. "What took you so long?"

Kenny noticed the look on Kai's face, which was a whole lot more vicious than when he'd left. Annie looked sort of like a pouting child who'd been caught doing something wrong even though, in reality, she had done nothing wrong. "What's wrong, Kai?"

"Nothing," he spat out. Kai turned his glare on Kenny, who didn't refrain himself from shuddering and he dropped the subject.

The ride back was tense. Kai just glared ahead, clearly not seeing any of the scenery pass by. Tyson was chatting amiably with the driver. Kenny was discussing something with Dizzi, who was open in his lap. He had Draciel in his other hand.

Annie had her arms crossed and was mentally going over what had happened that afternoon. Max kept shooting curious stares back at her, but stopped when she looked up at him with one of her eyebrows raised as if to say, 'what?'

Kai and Annie departed as soon as soon as they were back at the dojo. Max left to go help his dad in his shop, so Tyson went inside to have a very different kind of practice session with his grandfather.

The walk back to the Hiwitari mansion was just as quiet as the ride to the dojo. They walked into the building and were about to turn their separate ways when they both stopped dead and stared at their surroundings.

The inside of the mansion looked positively festive in a gloomy sort of way. They each cautiously took a few more hesitant steps into the gleaming building.

"What the-" before Annie could finish, Voltaire and Vada came down the grand staircase, arm in arm. They looked dressed up and Annie and Kai could hear faint chatter coming from the drawing room.

"What is this?!" Annie asked in disbelief.

Vada looked disapprovingly at the two of them in everyday clothing. "We are having a bit of a party in preparation," She said quite stiffly.

Annie almost said, 'preparation for what?' But then she saw Kai's scowl and remembered that their wedding day was drawing ever closer. Kai stalked off towards his room and Annie swept past her great aunt towards her's with a scowl very similar to the one on her soon-to-be stepbrother's face. But she was met with another surprise when she closed the door to her room and turned around.

"What are you doing here!?" she screeched, her eyes wide. Max was sitting cross-legged on her floor, her beyblade in his hand. In the few seconds it took for him to look up at her, Annie had stormed over and snatched her blade from his hand. Her blade was dark blue, the color of Dranzer actually, except her blade had random deep purple streaks all across it in no particular pattern. Annie couldn't help but notice how right it felt when she held it. A pang of nostalgia hit her as she realized how long it had been since she'd locked it away. She shook the thought from her head and turned back to Max who was now smiling up at her a little sheepishly.

She sighed, sat down next to him, and said, "How did you get in here?"

"One of the maids let me in through a back way and directed me towards your room." That figured. Max wouldn't have been let anywhere near the house if he'd been caught by Voltaire or Vada.

What surprised Annie most was that she didn't really mind having the usually hyper teen in her room. It wasn't even bothering her right now to sit next to him. But what she did mind was, "Why were you going through my stuff?!"

Max held up his hands in an apologetic surrender. "Calm down, Annie. I wasn't really going through your things. But you can't leave an unlocked, fancy box in front of a visitor. Besides, it wasn't like I was going to steal anything," he defended.

Annie smiled wryly as she replaced her blade. "Sorry, I wasn't aware I was going to have company." It pleased her that she could talk to him now that Max was in _her_ territory. Or rather, Kai's.

She looked down at the box again. "What's wrong?" asked Max after seeing the expression on her face.

Annie ran her fingertips over it's smooth surface. "I haven't touched my blade since they released me from the Abbey," she murmured softly. Out of the corner of her vision she saw Max's eyes widen slightly. He got up.

"Well, I have to go help my dad in his shop. So I guess I'll see you later."

"Wait! Why did you even come?"

"Oh! I just wanted to say... well, I saw what happened between you and Tala today, and... well, I'm just glad that things should be more peaceful from now on."

"Peaceful?" Annie snorted. "What do you mean?" But she had to admit that, compared to the beginning, things were already more peaceful.

"Just that Kai's looking out for you like an older brother should," Max said simply with a smile and left. Annie was left in a state of confusion.

Kai? Looking out for her? The idea was almost laughable. Annie had gotten used to Kai causing most of her problems. But then... _I don't want you anywhere near him!_ Was that what he meant? Had Kai really been looking out for her?

What an interesting thought. She doubted Max had any idea what he was talking about... but an interesting thought none the less.

**Okay, sorry it's been so long since the last update, even though it probably feels longer than it has actually been. Review Please! This was an interesting chapter to write. I hope you like it! I enjoyed writing it. :)**

_**Revised 11/20/12**_


	10. The Wedding

**Chapter 10: The Wedding**

The scowl that Annie was wearing looked a little too permanent when she appeared from her room. True, she had been wearing it all morning, so that may have had something to do with it.

Kai's expression went blank as soon as he saw her. He was fighting the urge to snicker. It wasn't hard to resist. He wasn't much more pleased than she was, and all those years of training at the Abbey had taught him to maintain his apathetic, uncaring look better than that.

Annie had a simple white dress on. Most likely, it was the only thing the maids had been able to force her into. Her jeans stuck out from the bottom, as did her beat up sneakers. Her arms were crossed and her scowl turned into a murderous look once she saw Kai. Her look was just warning him not to say anything. So of course, who could resist?

As they began walking down the hall he taunted, "What? Not going to do your hair up all special?"

**Annie's P.O.V.**

I don't think anyone's mocking has ever made me want to punch that person through a wall more than Kai's did. True, it had always been this way. We'd actually gotten into a physical fight at the Abbey. Kai of course had easily won. In fact, looking back, my wild attempts had been ridiculous, and were embarrassing to remember, but I wasn't optomistic enough to hope that Kai had forgotten it.

I didn't answer and we walked the rest of the way in silence. I don't think I've ever seen Kai in a suit before. I doubt anyone has, but the same goes for me being in a dress. Just as expected, the whole ceremony was hell, complete with all of Vada and Voltaire's business associates. I was resisting an eye roll the entire time. I couldn't speak for Voltaire, but I knew from experience that Vada only ever married for money or power, and Voltaire Hiwitari had far too much of both.

I have to say, the best part was when all the Bladebreakers showed up in suits. From the look on Kai's face he hadn't planned this, and Voltaire looked furious, but he wasn't about to make a scene. I sure didn't plan this, but I'm guessing it was Max.

The wedding was typical for a teenager. Boring. Long. Especially when you couldn't stand either person who was part of it.

Most of the guests were people who did business with Voltaire. They seemed none too pleased to see me and disgusted at the presence of the Bladebreakers, (even though they behaved themselves surprisingly well.) but they would nod to Kai with cold approval when they entered. Kai, in return, would nod in recognition, but it wasn't much warmer than the looks they gave him.

At the reception Max sat next to me. All the dancing was disturbingly formal. I had lost track of Kai a while ago and the rest of his team mates had disappeared. How was it that these people managed to look cold and unsatisfied even as they waltzed past?

"Annie?" Max started quietly. It was amazing. What wedding didn't blast music? They could at least play it loud enough so that I couldn't hear him when he whispered. Knowing that I heard him, I would have to answer.

"What?" I hissed. For some reason, it felt right to stay quiet. Maybe it was because I was more or less surrounded by enemies.

"How... I was just wondering... Annie, how did you end up in the Abbey?" I don't think I'd ever seen Max look nervous before. And for some reason, a strange sense of... (was it panic or fear?) grew inside me as he asked. I almost hoped I'd heard him wrong.

"I mean..." he continued. "We know some of Kai's story, but we don't know anything about you." His cheeks got a bit of a red tinge to them as I sat more still than ever and continued in my stiff silence. I wished he would stumble into something rushed. Apologizing for invading my darkest memories. Something that would excuse me from answering him. But he said nothing more.

So I sighed and whispered, "Not here, okay?" I got up and left the unnecessarily large room. Honestly, people shouldn't be able to hold weddings in their homes! Just as I expected, Max was right on my heels. "Wait here," I told him when we reached the grand staircase. Thankfully, he followed my orders as I rushed up to my room. Not ten seconds later I was back at the bottom of the stairs with Max, clutching my little locked box. "Come on."

He followed me to the steps of the basement. It wasn't really a basement, which he learned when we reached the bottom.

Sure, technically, it was Kai's not mine, but I couldn't help but smile proudly as he took it in with a gaping mouth. "Wow..." he murmured. "And I thought the downstairs to my dad's store was cool..."

Our basement was Kai's super advanced, personal training ground. It had everything you could ever hope for during a training session; I doubted Max's mom worked with more advanced equipment.

I sat on the edge of a dish. It was about the size of an official tournament stadium. Max sat next to me. The only improvement they could make down here would be to add a little color. Most of the equipment were in shades of black or a metallic gray. Though there was one deep blue dish, the one we were sitting on the edge of. It was the exact shade as Dranzer; Kai's favorite practice dish even though it was fairly simple compared to the others.

I found myself sighing again as I turned my box over and over in my hands. I listened, enraptured, to the slight rattling sound my blade and ripcord made against the walls of the box. Without looking up I said, "So, you wanna hear my story, huh?" My voice sounded cool and almost amused. It was a bit of a surprise to my own ears.

Max's ears reddened once more. "I'm sorry, Annie. You don't have to do this. I know it isn't any of my business..."

Oh sure, _now_ he excused me from my explanation. I resisted rolling my eyes as I noticed how he left the 'but' so politely out of his sentence. Oh well. Too bad for him. I had never spilled my past into anyone else's possession before. But now, I was ready to tell my story. So I took a deep breath and began.

"You asked why I ended up in the Abbey... Well, I guess the most simple way to put it is that my parents shouldn't have been parents. I wasn't horrible or anything, but I was no angel. I was a typical little kid and my parents couldn't handle someone who couldn't take care of herself. But my parents were lucky. Not every undesired child has some great aunt that they can be sent away to. About a month later I turned six. Then Vada sent me to the Abbey. I wasn't the only girl there, there just weren't many."

I paused to see how Max was taking this. His expression was more grim than I'd ever seen it. But there wasn't any paleness or shock, or anything I'd been expecting. Then I had to remind myself that he and his team mates knew some of Kai's story. Up to this point was the only part where our stories were similar. Max would've been expecting this part.

"Well," I continued. "I don't want to make it seem like I'm special and immune to them or anything, 'cause I'm not. But one night while I was in my... well, they looked more like cells than rooms to me, I just thought that erasing all my emotions seemed like an easy way out, not a way to become stronger."

I looked down at my box and gingerly, cautiously undid the latch. Max watched intently as I took out my blade and laid it onto my palm. It sat there for a moment. Then, Max got up as I did. I removed my ripcord from it's safe. I put them into a position they hadn't been into in a little over a year. I launched my blade into the dish with an amount of skill that surprised me more than anyone.

It really was like riding a bicycle. You never completely forget. As it flew back into my hand a voice from the top of the stairs called, "Annie."

Max and I both whirled around. A frown immediately placed itself onto my face.

"We need to talk," He continued. I grudgingly followed him up the stairs and left Max in the basement. He led me out to a porch out over our backyard.

Five seconds after stepping out there I turned on him. Perhaps the real question should have been 'why are you here', but the one I asked was, "What do you want, Tala?"

**Dun, Dun, Dun, DUN!**

**Read an Review please! I'm sorry I didn't get around to updating in so long! I don't own Beyblade.**

**Review! What do u think he wants?**

_**Ugh, I can't believe I did the whole 'randomly switch to first person' thing. But, I guess I can only be content with it now. **_

_**Revised 11/20/12**_


	11. Invitation

**Chapter 11: Invitation**

"What do you want, Tala?" Annie asked again when the red-haired boy just watched her and chuckled the first time. Her voice could probably cut through some of the food out in the reception area better than any of the knives.

"Tala! Why the hell are you here?" A new voice made them both turn towards the doorway. Standing just inside was Kai. His eyes were sparking with a menace that Annie couldn't ever remember seeing in him before, and she'd gotten him pretty pissed off in the past.

Tala seemed amused and even worse, in control of the whole situation. This wasn't like it was out in the street where it basically would've been a free-for-all. Tala seemed to belong here. Tala fit into this setting more than Annie; even more than Kai.

"You weren't told?" Tala held up a white envelope. "I was invited."

"Yeah, well I live here. Get out."

Tala just chuckled once more. "I was _invited_ here. If you're grandfather had a choice _you'd_ be out of here in seconds." Before either boy or Annie could speak again, the sound of two sets of footsteps echoed from somewhere close by.

Annie swore under her breath and Kai seemed to get even angrier. Tala's triumphant smile made it only too obvious who was about to make an appearance. And sure enough Vada and Voltaire came up behind Kai. They were arm in arm and looked more royal than they ever had. One could easily take them for aristocracy. Though... if they weren't, Annie was sure they were just a short step below it.

"Kai," spoke up Vada imperiously. "Leave us now." You could almost see Kai's blood boiling at the sight of his new step-grandmother giving him orders. But Voltaire gave him a look and Kai swept past the two.

"Glad you could make it, Tala." _Just great_, thought Annie. She was in a triangle of enemies.

"Hello, Anastasia. It's good to see you again as well." _Right_, thought Annie sarcastically, _Because I_ haven't _been living here all this time_.

"Can I help you?" she asked icily.

Voltaire looked at her in a disapproving, almost threatening way. "Young lady, you are expected to speak to your elders in a respectful tone around here."

Annie resisted rolling her eyes. Voltaire knew perfectly well that her aunt had brought her up being taught to respect her elders. But overly harsh punishments often cause children to rebel...

"We have a proposition for you," he continued.

What was she, their business partner? "And that would be?" She spoke coolly, but her three negotiators weren't deaf to the suspicion in her voice.

Vada's smile was icy. Her tone took on that 'I know best' sound. "Why Anastasia, you've spent enough time with those amateurs, haven't you? Come back to the Abbey. You have no idea what you could learn this time around if you decide to cooperate."

Shock filled Annie's mind and seemed to block out her senses. She didn't feel any irritation at the use of her full name. She couldn't even feel any contempt for the way her great-aunt had spoken to her. Go back to the Abbey? She'd just started blading again and they were up to this already?

Her great-aunt's convincing, almost soothing voice echoed through her mind. Perhaps what frightened her most was that her answer didn't immediately jump to mind. She was seriously contemplating going back.

Voltaire grinned as if he'd already won, but Annie missed the look completely. She'd turned her head down in thought. "Why don't we give Anastasia some time to think, hmm? I'm sure she has a lot to consider."

Vada and Voltaire swept away. Tala gave her one last smirk then hurried after them.

**...**

Later that evening Vada and Voltaire were alone in their quarters.

"So what do you think?"

"Nice work," Vada answered. "I'm sure Annie will come to her senses now that it's her choice." Vada snickered to herself. Her great-niece really wasn't all that hard to figure out. All she wanted was to be in control.

**Review Please! So I've finally finished it! **

**I don't own Beyblade!**

_**Revised 11/20/12**_


	12. Puppet master

**Holy crap, I'm updating! I know... it's incredible. Coincidentally, this is the last chapter. Sorry it took so long! **

**Chapter Twelve: Puppet master **

Kai was making his rounds through the house. It was five in the morning. Sure, everyone had stayed up late the night before and this was freakishly early to get up on a Sunday, but... well, that's just Kai for you.

He stopped when he got to Annie's room. There was a... scuffling coming from inside. What was she doing in there? Not long after her talk with Vada and Voltaire, Annie had barricaded herself in her room. No one had seen her since. Max had left shortly after it was clear that she was not coming back.

Kai had a fairly good idea what their talk had been about, but he hadn't expected to see such a change in Annie. The slate-haired teen knew firsthand how well his grandfather had gotten the whole brainwashing thing down. He shuddered inwardly. Even Kai wasn't immune to their ways, but... Annie, like himself, was strong enough to resist. (Well, usually.) He hated even briefly entertaining the idea that he had any ounce of worry regarding her general wellbeing inside of him, but _something_ made him pause longer than usual in his contemplation.

Kai considered knocking, but in the end he just threw open the door and looked in. Annie barely looked up. She was kneeling on the floor, holding her old beyblade. Kai recognized it. In the end, Annie never had beat him... but at least she'd never given up. In more ways than one, she reminded him faintly of Tyson. Perhaps that was why she inspired both a certain fondness and the depths of his hatred on occasion.

The blade looked strange in Annie's hand. It was like one of those pictures where there are a bunch of items with common traits, and one that just doesn't fit. There was definitely something in this picture that didn't fit, Kai just wasn't sure what: the beyblade, or Annie?

That blade fit perfectly with his memory of Annie. The younger Annie who always seemed so sure of herself. For the first time he wondered about her life afterwards. What had happened to her once she'd been released?

Finally, when she noticed that Kai was still standing in her doorway, Annie looked up. "Yes?"

But it didn't sound right. It didn't sound like Annie at all. Her voice was croaky, as if she hadn't used it in weeks.

"How... are you...?"

The words sounded equally off, coming from him.

Annie looked down at her blade. She suddenly looked as if her world were falling apart. Kai was a bit taken aback. He knew girls had a tendency to overdramatize everything, but he really didn't think this was that big of a deal.

"I... I don't know what to do anymore..."

Kai had gone from taken aback to being a bit shocked. He slowly closed the door without responding. She wouldn't go along with Voltaire and Vada's proposition... it was obvious, right?

**...**

Annie knew what her answer _should _be. She also knew that her answer should be obvious. She'd worked so hard to get out of that hellhole... and now she was free. The last thing she wanted was to go back.

So why was so much thought going into this one decision?

Not five minutes later, Voltaire strode by Annie's room, much like Kai had meant to do. Annie hadn't come out since his offer. Voltaire took this as a good sign. The more Annie thought about it, the more likely she was to go along with his plan. After all, it was his grandson's brooding that had put him back in control.

He made his way down to the dining room where Vada was waiting, their breakfast already set out for the two of them. They gave each other small smiles, both knowing the outcome, then he sat down to eat.

**...**

_Annie closed the door silently behind her. In the middle of the room was Tala, practicing. He'd been alone until she'd entered. __Annie almost rolled her eyes. She liked beyblading as much as the next person, but in here, it was the only thing that existed. _

_She knew Tala had noticed her entrance, but he was ignoring her. She slowly approached the rim of the stadium. Annie's own blade was in her pocket, but she wasn't here for a challenge. Not today._

_Finally, he called his blade back. With the lightest smack against his palm, Wolborg flew back to his hand._

_"What do you want, Annie?" __When she didn't answer him Tala turned to look at her with a cold gaze. "Nothing? Then get lost."_

_Still, Annie didn't move. She seemed to be hypnotized by the dish, even though there was now nothing special about it. __Finally, Annie looked up at Tala's scowling face. He was slightly cut up from a recent match with Bryan, but Annie knew that Tala had won. He was the stronger of the two, and Tala's mind was usually open to strategy. He had his off moments, but too often it seemed that Bryan let his anger get the better of him._

_"Why do you do it?" she finally asked. _

_"Do what?" Tala's expression hadn't changed in the least so she couldn't tell if she'd confused him at all. _

_"Play the pawn." Tala wasn't her favorite person in the world, but he wasn't an idiot. He had to realize what was really going on around them._

_Tala smirked. "You have to be the pawn before you can be the puppet master," he'd answered. __"And I've already been the pawn," he continued. "They think they're in control, but I'm the one pulling the strings now."_

**...**

In the end, Annie wasn't too sure Tala had been right. He'd definitely lost his position of power. But it was an interesting idea...

**...**

The next day, Annie was walking into Tyson's yard. Everyone else was already there. She knew she was late. But she'd meant to be. And with some luck she would run into the only person she really wanted to see today.

A shadow shifted from behind a tree. Annie's heart leaped into her throat. Kai? She couldn't put this off any longer.

But when the shadow moved...

"There you are, Annie!" She was almost dismayed to see the blond move out from behind the tree's shadow. But as soon as she felt that a tiny bit of guilt crept in. Max was the only one other than Kai that she had really connected with on her new team. She couldn't leave without saying goodbye.

"Hey, Max." She tried to smile, but by the look on Max's face she could tell that it wasn't coming out right.

His face fell a little. "What's wrong?"

"Well... I..." She stopped. She didn't want to lie to him, but... well a half-truth would do. "I'm not a part of your team anymore."

Max's face seemed to fall even further. "Why not? I thought you liked being a Bladebreaker. You haven't even gone through your first tournament with us yet."

"It- it's my aunt and Voltaire. They're kinda... control freaks."

"That's awful! It's _your_ life!"

Annie hadn't thought it possible to hear Max sound fierce. She just shrugged. "I'll be alright."

"Will you keep in touch?"

"Max, I... I don't think I can."

Any other person's face might have fell, but Max, and all his damn optimism, just smiled at her and said, "I'm sure I'll see you again."

Annie blinked, but the biggest surprise had yet to come. Actually, it came just a second later. Max bent over and kissed her on the cheek. While Annie stood there, stunned, Max smiled at her, waved and hurried back into the house to find Tyson and continue their training session.

Annie was still standing there with the same expression when Kai walked out of the shadow. His usual scowl was marred by a look that was crossed between amusement and fury.

"Did he just-" he started.

But Annie, seeming to recompose herself but still looking a bit shocked, cut him off. "Never mind." He gave her a look that clearly stated that this was not a 'never mind' time, but she plowed on anyway. "There's something I want to talk to you about."

Kai stiffened a bit as if he knew what was coming next. "About the thing with Grandfather and Vada?"

"... Yes. I've made my decision."

Kai nodded as if that was a given. Calmly, he said, "I can't believe you even had to think about that."

Just as calmly as he'd dismissed the topic, Annie answered, "Kai, I'm not staying."

The look on Kai's face was priceless. He couldn't even manage a 'What?'.

Just as he was spluttering to an answer, Annie said, "Just hear me, out okay?" Once again, she didn't wait for an answer. "I know it sounds like I'm giving up, but I'm not." Kai gave her a doubtful look. So Annie said a bit more firmly, "I'm not. It may not look like it, but I'm taking control."

"How?" he asked skeptically.

"I gave up on the Abbey so many years ago because I thought they were teaching all the wrong things. And they are," she added quickly. "But then I thought about it. I mean, really thought about it. You and Tala and everyone else has gotten so strong from your training at the Abbey. And I could really use that. This is my choice. And besides, I can act. They'll think they're in control when really, I'm the one who's pulling the strings."

Kai was quiet still so Annie continued, trying to put her thoughts into words, but not so sure it was coming out right. "I need this, Kai!"

She said it so forcefully with just a bit of desperation that he raised an eyebrow.

"It's like it's just one of those things that's supposed to happen! I think I just postponed it by running away before. This'll be a good experience; I'm going to become stronger from it."

"When did that become important to you?" It was strange. Annie always managed to irritate him, but for some reason, this felt different.

"As a person, not as a blader."

Kai finally seemed to accept that she wasn't going to change her mind. "So why are you telling _me_ this? Why not just leave?"

"I... figured you might want to know."

"Why should I?" he asked indifferently.

"You're right." she said with a smile as she began to walk away. "You shouldn't."

**THE END!**

**Read and Review please! I hope you liked it! And I hope you aren't disappointed with the ending. This was the only ending that I could see that really fit Annie and Kai's personalities.**

**And now... A Thanks To All My Reviewers:**

**Nek0Nek0: I was your beta-reader at one point... Haven't talked to you in a while. Thanks for my very first review!**

**sasukechica: Anonymous, but full of good points. I hadn't really looked at it before, but I like your pen name.**

**-izza-x23- Interesting pen name. No idea what it means... Thanks for the review! Short though...**

**VentusShun16- I really like your pen name... Also a short review, but appreciated all the same. **

**Kissing Serendipity- Thanks for the constructive criticism! It's really appreciated though I probably didn't listen to it...**

**Ninja2K- Your reviews were short as well, but every review was loved! And, just like Ventus (forgot to mention this) you reviewed more than once, so I really loved that! :)**

**chocolatexloverx16- I talked to you via PM for a little while, but your another author I haven't heard from in a while... Thanks for the reviews! They tended to be long. :) Glad you liked the story! **

**misasan- Another anonymous reviewer so I couldn't PM you, but... oh well. Yeah... Max and Kai (well, not so much Max from the way I see him) both got a little OOC, but I don't think it was that bad. Glad you liked it!**

**Kiray Himawari: My latest review! ^^ I haven't gotten a chance to PM you yet and for that I am sorry. So I think I'll do that right about now...**

**Hope you enjoyed it! I did, but I'm glad I finally got around to finishing it! I need some time to work on my seemingly millions of other stories that need to be updated...**

**Oh! And 'case you didn't notice I changed the title to Giving Up Yesterday because... well, it just sounds cooler.**

**And it sorta makes sense. Well, to me anyway. ;)**

_**Revised 11/20/12**_


	13. Revision Note

Wow, it feels so weird to be writing anything new for this story… But don't worry! This is just an author note.

Almost three years ago, now, I finished my first (and to this day only) Beyblade story. I finished generally proud of it, but I went back to reread it now and I decided it really kind of sucked…

I got so many awesome reviews, but I have now officially revised it, and am ready to put this story to rest. However, there are a few things I'd like to address first…

There are some things that I feel I didn't sufficiently go into, and no amount of revising could really fix without practically rewriting the entire story:

Under no circumstances did Vada and Voltaire marry for love. As many of you hinted at, that would be very out of character, and I agree. As I tried to mention somewhere in there, Vada marries for status, money, and power. Voltaire has plenty of each. You can leave it up to your own imagination his motivation for marrying her.

Annie did not do the impossible in getting thrown out of the Abbey. She was 'a resister' which normally would have resulted in stronger discipline, had Vada not taken her out of the program in an attempt to save the family's reputation.

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what will happen next. At one point in time, I did have sequel detailed out, but that idea has long since faded. Perhaps we'll be hearing from Annie again, but most likely not.

Thank you all again for your wonderful reviews, and if you happen to see this, I hope you bother to read the revision. Thank you!


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